300 WSM...

Split the difference and get a 7 WSM....

Actually any of them should work just fine. If you're recoil sensitive try the 270. If you hunt more Elk buy the 300 WSM. Buy the 7 if you want the best of both worlds. If you're looking at Kimber 8400's buy the one with the best wood.
I own and like them all but all else aside I think that I would rather shoot a deer with a 300 than an Elk with a 270.........DJ

I have a .270WSM and the other posters all make pretty much the same point: The .300WSM shoots heavier bullets and kicks harder (duh?). If you are recoil sensitive, go for the .270 like I did since I have a bad shoulder. Don't think I would want more kick than the .270WSM with full house loads with 150 gr bullets. But then again, the .270WSM with 150 gr bullets performance is very close to the 7mm Remington Magnum with 150 gr bullets and I rarely see posts disparaging the big 7 as an elk cartridge, even with the 150 gr loads. I am pretty confident that if I get a shot at an elk, that a 140 gr Nosler Accubond or a 150 gr Nosler Partition exiting the muzzle at over 3000 fps will get the job done as long as I put the bullet in the right place. And I am equally confident that I will have more opportunities for shots at deer than elk, so for me the .270 made a lot of sense. If I was primarily an elk/moose hunter, maybe I would consider the .300wsm or even the new .325WSM, but if that were the case, chances are I would go for a .338/06 or a .35 Whelen and try to get close enough to put even bigger bullets in the right spot, without damaging my shoulder even more than it already is.

Talked to a couple of Gander Mountain corporate office guys today re: small magnums.

They said that the .270wsm was selling well but the 7mm wsm was not.

Jeez!! Is this anything like the ".30/'06 vs .270 Win." argument that lasted from about 1926 to, to, well, I guess that is still going on too???

IF your a handloader, the 300 is plenty versatile, what with TSX's at 130 grains, NBT's at 125, TSX's and AB's at 150, shoot there's a lot of flexibility. I've been thinking about a 7 myself just cause I don't have one--what a concept huh????

At any rate, for JUST ONE, between the 300 and 270, I hate to say it, but the 300 probably has a broader range of options as a handloaded cartridge....

Using factory ammo: deer more than elk, choose the 270WSM. Elk more than deer, choose the 300WSM

Handloading: 300WSM

I couldn't decide so I bought one of each. If I had to pick one, it would be a 300 particularly if elk hunting was in your future. I use my 270 for deer and the 300 for everything else.

quote:

Originally posted by LJS:
I couldn't decide so I bought one of each.

Now that's what I'm talking about.
Good Man!

I just bought 7mmRM and 300WM and 338 WM and 270 Win and am looking at a 270 WSM or a 264 WM for a long distance goat getter...antelope rifle...there is a need for all of these rounds...diversity is delicious...

Odd thread... I never started the original thread, just responded to someone that did, now here it is over three years later in a dismembered state.

Weird how some of these threads end up corrupted.

BTW, my answer still remains "300 WSM."

I own them both (NULA's) and they both are great. However, I use the 270 WSM far more frequently as most of my hunting is on deer size game.

quote:

deer more than elk, choose the 270WSM. Elk more than deer, choose the 300WSM

+1....I think intended quarry is needed to say which one is best, but the 300 does offer more versatility.